When you think of an airport you’re likely to conjure up images of wide open spaces, cordoned off for kilometres, free of any midair obstacles, and normally you’d be right on the money. However, perched between two 6km mountains, Paro Airport in Bhutan is anything but normal.

Situated 2.4km above sea level in the Himalayas, Paro Airport is nestled between sheer cliffs and is said to be one of the most dangerous airports in the world. The runway is just shy of 2km long, one of the only in the world which is shorter than its elevation above sea level.

Nestled between the mountains

Takeoff and landing at the airport are particularly daunting; strong winds whip between the peaks and through the valleys, resulting in severe, unpredictable turbulence, that have to be compensated for while weaving through the dozens of houses scattered across the mountainside. It’s no surprise then that there are only 8 pilots in the world qualified to land there. As one flier put it,

‘Goodness gracious!! I thought this kind of landing would’ve been possible only in FlightSim, because aviation safety rules would’ve disallowed it – especially seeing how close the aircraft gets to the hill.’

Relieved passengers disembark

Due to the incredibly challenging circumstances flights are only permitted during daylight hours. Despite this, the airport still receives more than 30 000 travellers a year, many of them holiday-makers.